The Sue Committee
by Fruity-Fruit-Cups
Summary: Xion managed to get rid of the Sues, but not forever. While Aerith has to deal with them and try not to lose her sanity, Xion has to find a way to get rid of the Sues permanently and find her friend. With a little help, maybe she can.
1. New 'Friends'

Dedicated to nobody in particular. :D  


* * *

The rebuilding of Hollow Bastion was coming along smoothly. Thanks to the Restoration Committee, the world was finally nice enough to live in again. It was far from its former glory, but it was slowly inching back to its old beauty.

Ever since people had gotten word of Hollow Bastion's new and improved state, the world was quickly coming back to life. People streamed in from many different worlds. Some came to see if it was as beautiful as they had heard, while other's wanted to move back to their childhood home.

Leon was one of those people. He came here when it was just a desolate wasteland. Heartless swarmed all over the ruined town like horrible bugs. Together he and the other members of the Restoration Committee exterminated the beasts until there weren't enough to even be considered a threat.

When they began rebuilding -and actually started calling themselves the Restoration Committee-, somehow Leon was not surprised when he was named leader. Yuffie was...well, Yuffie, Merlin was too busy to devote enough time to such a responsibility, Cloud (Leon never did like him that much, despite Yuffie's attempts at making them become friends) was too busy trying to find and defeat his inner darkness to be of much help, Tifa tried to help, but her main goal was to find Cloud, and Aerith said she was a horrible leader. Being Aerith, everyone believed her.

While Leon was usually glad that he was a member of the committee dedicated to restoring his favorite place in the universe, there was always one part of the job he hated:

The Immigration Department.

Before they never needed one, but with the sudden influx of people, they decided that it would be best if they created an Immigration department. The rule was that one person from the Committee should always be on duty. Thankfully it was only open from 9-5.

Squall didn't like dealing with people that much. Leon, however, _hated_ dealing with strangers. Especially young children. Their constant screeching, their whining, their incessant crying...

Leon fully acknowledged that he would not make a good father.

He leaned back in his chair and set his feet on the desk, fully enjoying the fact that so far, nobody had appeared to force him to actually do his job. This was the first day that that they had been open for more than 5 minutes without a single person wanting to live here and make him help them through all of the legal trouble of doing so.

However, he realized bitterly that it was about to end with the voices outside quickly coming closer. The door opened to reveal 12 very emotional people: some confused, others angry.

Leon watched them as they slowly came inside, muttering to themselves. "May I help you?" he asked warily.

12 heads turned towards him.

"Hey! It's my daddy's lover!" One of the people, a thin girl wearing a t-shirt with an odd, pointed, upside-down heart, shouted. She ran out of the group and up to Leon, happily pulling him into a hug.

Leon looked down, trying to locate the face underneath a mass of rust-colored spikes that reminded him of Cloud a little too much than he liked. "Do I know you?" He asked, monotone as usual.

She let go of him with an offended scoff. "_Hel-lo_? Agailia, your lovers daughter?"

Now that he was actually able to see her face, he grimaced. She resembled Cloud so strongly if he didn't remember that Cloud was an only child in his mid-20's (thank goodness for that), he would have thought that they were related.

The girl's words sunk into Leon, giving him an even bigger grimace at what she meant. "Little girl, I don't like being in the same room as him, let alone the same bed."

As she opened her mouth to issue a retort, a sweet, honey-like voice from the group stopped her. "Agailia? Don't make him mad." With another scoff, she retreated into the group as another figure took her place before Leon.

It was a woman, about the same age as Leon. She regarded him with multicolored eyes and a confusing smile that shone brighter than Aerith's. She seemed to literally sparkle with life, even under the jarring florescent lights of the building. "Hello, Leon." Normally he would have been paranoid that a strange woman he'd never met before knew his name but something about her calmed him down and even made him respond with a smile. "We're in Radiant Garden, right?"

Radiant Garden. The name seemed familiar to Leon, but he didn't know how. Memories flashed in his mind. Beautiful flowers, lush fields of grass, sparkling water serenely trickling from fountains, children happily skipping through town with their mothers, and a little brunet boy walking together with two little girls, sharing a bag of candy...

It suddenly came to him. Radiant Garden was the name of Hollow Bastion, back when it was a shining utopia and not a place in half-ruins. However, the town as it was didn't deserve to be called Radiant Garden...not yet. One day it would, but that day wasn't today.

"Yes, but for simplicity's sake, please call it Hollow Bastion." He responded, feeling the smile stick on it's face. It felt unnatural yet he didn't want it to go away. Not in front of this...this goddess.

She gave him a perplexed glance before breaking into another dazzling smile. "Oh yeah, Sora's not awake yet. Alright, we'll call it Hollow Bastion."

Sora. The name seemed familiar, but he couldn't attach a face to the name. Not even a voice came to him.

"Well, since we can't get back, we'd like to live here. Is that okay?" She asked, earning his full attention again.

"Yeah...I'd be glad to help you through the process." For once, he actually meant it.

* * *

The other members disappeared at once. Wile the others went off to various areas of the castle, Roxas and Axel reappeared next to Xion, who had sunk to her knees, staring blankly at the spot where Melle had been. They both crouched next to her. "Xion...you okay?"

"I-she-they-promise..." She managed to say. Roxas reached out to touch her, but Axel's hand on his shoulder and a whispered, "we can't help right now" sent them both off, leaving her all alone.

She couldn't do anything but stay there and stare. Xion had made a promise to make sure that Melle wouldn't get hurt. While Melle had kept her promise, Xion had broken hers. Xemnas had obliterated her. She was literally nothing now, and there was nothing she could do about it. There was no hope.

Those thoughts repeated themselves in her head dozens of times. Eventually something compelled her to get out of her trance, though she kept staring at the empty spot. She must have been there for hours, since her knees ached and her body felt stiff. She rolled her shoulders and shook her legs out in an attempt to make them feel better.

"Xion? Why are you still here?" She turned around to see her -currently- least favorite person: Xemnas. "Why do you care?" She snapped, sending him a (maybe) threatening glare.

He gave her a confused look, but that jerkass smirk was firmly planted on his face. "Xion, I didn't kill her. I merely turned her into nothing."

She snorted. "And _that's _better?"

"She's an imposter. Nothing. And you can't turn nothing into nothing."

"What do you mean b-" He had went through a corridor of darkness before she was even able to finish her sentence. Angry and confused, she yelled in rage, summoned her Keyblade, and threw it at the space where he was standing. It reappeared in her hand seconds later.

She looked own at it, realizing that staying angry wasn't going to do anything. So instead she mentally ran over his words.

_You can't turn nothing into nothing..._ A smile broke onto her face. Granted, it would mean calling Melle absolutely worthless, but if she was nothing, then she wasn't dead. It was a horrible thought, but a hopeful one.

Now her next task was finding out what happened to her friend. Having no leads, she decided to go talk to the smartest person she knew.

Which was not Axel. Axel's not a smart person.

* * *

Alright, you may be wondering why Leon's so entranced by Etsuko. Well, she the leader of the Sues. My current theory is that the Sue's charm only works on people with hearts, save for the Princesses of Heart. They can sense that the Sues aren't really what they seem to be. Oh, and one other person, but I don't know why (s)he isn't affected by them yet.

And also because the Organization was KIDNAPPED by them and Xion had to deal with the idiots LIVING IN HER CASTLE.

Axel should have been a little more comforting, but no. :l And of course Roxas would think that would be the right thing to do because Axel said it. Then again, I can't really blame him. If I was in their situation, I would have said, "lol ok -takes out PSP and starts playing again- too.


	2. Feeling Alone

Dedicated to everyone who's actually happy about the fact that Xion should be coming back in another KH game.  


* * *

Surprisingly, Xion stepped out of the dark corridor directly into Namine's White Room in the supposedly abandoned mansion. She expected the corridor to deposit her on the other side of Twilight Town, but she wasn't complaining; this was one of the few times that the dark corridor had actually led her to the exact place she wanted to go.

Namine was sitting in her usual spot at the end of the rectangular white table, except she wasn't drawing in her notebook like she usually was. She was staring at it with an expression that mixed sadness and fear perfectly. Xion worriedly approached her friend, resting a hand on her shoulder. Namine's grip tightened on her notebook. "Namine? Are you okay?" She asked.

Namime took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said, her soft voice reflecting her sadness. "Xion, please don't ask. It's not what you have to deal with." She looked up at the wall across from her, a happy mask slipping onto her face. "Now, what is it?"

Xion decided to take her advice and not ask, no matter how much she wanted to. "Melle's not dead! Xemnas said so!" She announced proudly, giving a wide smile to her friend, who smiled back.

"That's great. But how did you figure that out?"

Xion gladly began to explain. "Well, Xemnas said that she was nothing, and he tried turning her into nothing. But since she's nothing, and you can't turn nothing into nothing, she didn't die!"

They stared blankly at each other for several minutes.

Once she was able to decipher what Xion had said, Namine smiled. "That's wonderful! We just need to find out where she went, right?" Xion happily nodded.

Namine sighed. "Xion, the problem is...she could be anywhere in this universe. Maybe she's in the World That Never Was, hiding in one of the deserted houses. Maybe she's in a word we don't know how to get to. We don't know."

"I know that. But she's my friend, and I made a promise to her. Even if it means searching every single world there is, I will find her." Xion responded, her determination and confidence showing in her voice and face.

Namine giggled slightly. "You are a lot like Sora. Do you know what?"

"Gee Namine, I wonder why," she retorted sarcastically, causing both of them to giggle.

* * *

Somehow Leon had completely forgotten about Cid. The engineer...or whatever he was supposed to be had gone out to go try to find more of the world's original populace to bring back. While Leon thought that plenty of people come in each day via the Immigration Department, the others thought it would be a good idea for a member to go out and spread the news about Hollow Bastion becoming a habitable place again.

Since the loud, brash man was nowhere to be found, he had slipped Leon's mind. Etsuko was the one who reminded him about Cid; which he didn't find strange at all even though she was a complete stranger.

Most of the members bonded quickly to all of the newcomers, though some had a preference for certain people.

Yuffie had instantly bonded to Rati, Aime and Richard; going out to spar with them every day. She always came back battered and bruised, but incredibly happy.

Yuffie liked their sadistic streaks. The other members weren't too proud of her kleptomaniac tendencies, but the three newcomers quickly embraced that side of Yuffie, like she embraced their not-so-kind moods. She shot back jabs at both Richard and Rati and aruged with Aime, ending with the four laughing and fighting each other over what they would ask Etsuko to make for dinner.

Tifa wasn't around much, so she was only briefly introduced to the newcomers. Cloud, however, was. He didn't know he had a daughter, nor did he know he ever had a gay lover. He simply chalked it up to a drunken one night stand and too much booze, and Agailia was a product of that, even though men can't get pregnant. They bonded quickly.

Cloud also bonded with Vladimir. He didn't know he loved depressing, soulful poetry until he met him. Together they wrote many moving, inspiring works of art that simply amazed the others.

Leon found himself becoming fast friends with the goddess that was Etsuko. The wolf man, Ulfr, had deemed Leon a worthy friend of Etsuko, so the three of them were almost always together. Leon thought that it worked out well; the leader of the newcomers bonding with the leader of the Restoration Committee. They were quickly becoming a family, the kind that orphans dreamed of.

Which was funny, because most of the newcomers were orphans.

* * *

"Merlin, why are you leaving?" asked Aerith. The last few days the wizard had been doing nothing but packing, which confused her greatly. If he had an important place he needed to go, he would have told them, but he had been packing in secret.

"Aerith, my dear, it's those blasted newcomers! Everyone is so attached to them, but they're no good! Can't you tell?" He asked desperately, hoping for her to understand.

She did. Something about the newcomers was off. They were too perfect, and even though several of them were either horrible or downright uninteresting, the other members thought they were amazing and even wanted them to become members of the Restoration Committee.

Inside their hearts, they were empty. Aerith saw beyond the sparkles and fancy designs in their eyes, only to find nothing. It was as if they were soulless monsters, but she knew that wasn't true. "Yes, Merlin, I can tell," she said quietly. "But why are you leaving? Do they bother you that much?"

The wizard brought out his wand, casting a spell that put the last of his belongings in his bag. "They do, Aerith. I'm sorry, but I can't stay here any longer. I'll be on the other side of the world, so you can find me if you must." He explained.

She didn't know he was completely serious until now. Sighing, she gave him a wave goodbye. "I'll see you soon, Merlin." With a nod and a wave back, he started to disappear. "Be safe!" She called out just before the last of his image faded away; she hoped he heard her.

Now Aerith was alone; the only one who saw the newcomers for what they really were. She knew she wouldn't be able to convince the others that the newcomers were odd, she had already tried that with distressing results. They wouldn't believe her, no matter what she said. She had to figure out another way to get them to believe her, but she wasn't sure how.

* * *

Yep. Xion's supposed to be coming back in the KHverse. I think that's awesome. ^^ Though what really upsets me is how many people seem to hate her. She's not that bad, at all. She actually has a personality, and she does have flaws. Yes, she can use the Keyblade. Yes, she bonds with Axel and Roxas. What does she do in the end? Die. Without the only people she loves even remembering her. It's just sad.

Yes, as for this chapter. Sorry for the late update; I was working on NaNoWriMo. Now that its done, I can to back to working on this and Walls! Yay! :D If anyone is still around, I love you guys. Please forgive me.

Why can Aerith see through the Sues? Well...I haven't quite figured that out yet. Merlin can because he's a magical wizard, but as for Aerith...maybe because she's so sweet and nice? Eh, I'll figure it out later. Enjoy this chapter, tell me what you think.


	3. Animals Don't Sing and Dance! They Talk!

Dedicated to ThaymaturgicAdversary for leaving a really sweet review and Flightfoot for, yet again, helping me out. The reason why the Sue's don't affect Aerith? She's an Ancient.  


* * *

Aerith wondered why the Sues had no effect on her. When she was a little girl, her mother _had_ always told her that she was special, but most decent mothers told their children that anyway. It wasn't a special thing to be called special.

She was just glad that she wasn't obsessed with the newcomers like the others were. Even though it had only been a few days since they had met them, the others' lives now revolved around the odd group. She didn't understand why at all.

Sighing, she strolled through Hollow Bastion. Scrooge McDuck, in his frantic quest to create a flavor of ice cream he had loved as a child, had set up a huge freezer in the middle of town.

The door to the freezer was thrown open. Aerith peeked inside, seeing the duck arrange boxes inside. "Oh, hello Scrooge." She greeted, shivering at the rush of cold air against her skin. A sleeveless pink dress was not the best thing to wear when standing in front of a freezer.

"Why hello lassie!" He called back, setting his box down and walking out of the freezer. Aerith waved at the duck, giving him a gentle smile. "What brings you over here?"

"Oh, just taking a walk," she responded. To be honest, it was to get away from her friends fawning over the newcomers and to clear her head, but he didn't need to get involved in her problems.

"Well, it is a beautiful day today, don't you think?" He asked, gesturing towards the clear blue skies above them. She nodded. After all, the beautiful weather was why she chose to wear a sleeveless pink dress. Now, if only she could get Scrooge to step out of the freezer...

By some odd stroke of luck, he did. Slamming the huge door shut behind him, Scrooge stood in front of the freezer. He smiled, then turned and started rooting through a pile of boxes off to the side. "Aye, lassie, have ya ever heard of a place called Disneytown?"

Aerith worried the bottom of her lip, trying to remember if she had ever gone to a place like that, but her mind drew a blank. "I'm sorry, but I've never heard of that place before. Why do you ask?"

Having found what he was looking for, Scrooge yanked his head out of the box and proudly waved a small scrap of paper in the air. "Found it!"

"What is it," Aerith asked, curiosity seeping into her voice.

"I used to live in Disneytown, and every year they send me a lifetime pass. I usually give them away to acquaintances, but this year I can't find anyone to give it to! I can't even sell it! Do you want it?" He asked, hopeful and anxious. It broke Aerith's heart, but she had to refuse.

"I'm sorry Scrooge, but I can't. I have no way of getting there. Good luck finding someone to give that to." Aerith frowned at the duck's slumped shoulders, but there was nothing she could do. She decided to keep moving, rather than stay here and wallow in sadness, unlike _some_ blond males she knew. "Goodbye Scrooge."

"Goodbye lassie..." His voice faded away the further away she walked. Eventually she'd return back to her house, or possibly back to the newcomers 'new home,' but for now she wanted time to herself.

* * *

24 days. Xion had 24 days left to find a way to get rid of the Sues for good. If she didn't, the barrier would disappear, and they would come back...with a vengeance. They would probably hurt her, her friends, and her twisted version of a family. She wasn't going to let that happen.

She also had to find Melle, but she had no clue as to where she would be. It wasn't much of a plan, but for now she would scout around any world she could get to, just to look for her friend. She had made a promise, and while she had broken it once, she wasn't going to break it again.

So she did. She walked out of a dark corridor, only for her ears to be assaulted with cheery, loud, childish music. Dozens of animals were dancing in a circle, chanting something about a king. While the land around them was desolate and gray, the ground they danced upon remained vibrant and colorful. The animals, ranging from birds to lions to even hippos, danced and sang like their lives depended on it.

Needless to say, Melle wasn't here, so Xion left the odd animals. Dancing animals? Why? Was she thrown into a childrens movie or something? Animals didn't dance in real life. Sure, they talk, but they don't sing! That would be silly!

It was like saying men had babies. It was ridiculous and unrealistic.

She kept traveling through worlds, but for some off reason, in every single one she went to, the residents were singing. She didn't understand why, but at the last one she felt the need to sing and dance along, so she promptly left.

* * *

Now she was in a new world; actually, it was just a room. A beautiful sculpture of a strange world decorated a plain table, surrounded by paintbrushes and pots full of odd liquid, what she assumed to be paint. The door behind her was locked, but a flight of stairs led up past her field of vision.

Xion was about to leave until she saw a rabbit, sitting on the table by the beautiful sculpture. She stiffened, remembering her and Roxas's previous encounters with rabbits. They always caused trouble for her and her friends.

Yet...this one was different. His face actually showed emotion; a perpetual frown, but an emotion nonetheless. While he was still black and white, his coloring was different, and his eyes were large black ovals. It reminded her of the picture of the King Riku had shown her once. They could be brothers, if she ignored the fact that they were two entirely different species.

He finally noticed Xion and gave her a quick glare before hopping into the sculpture and disappearing out of her sight. Something in the back of her mind told her that this rabbit knew something. She wanted to follow it, but common sense told her to leave and keep moving. So she summoned a dark portal and left, but not before making sure to paint a mental picture of the room she was leaving. She wasn't sure why, but she knew she had to remember this room for some reason or another.

* * *

With no real place to go, Xion found herself in Twilight town. It seemed that the corridors always directed her to the quaint town whenever she had no real goal in mind.

The corridor had deposited her in the confusing, snaking tunnels underneath the town. Today, like most days, she didn't see a single trace of human life. A few Shadows crawled along the edges of the tunnel, but upon seeing her, quickly melted into the shadows.

"Hmm, guess I'm all alone," she said, walking through the tunnels. Nostalgia washed over her as she fondly remembered the many missions that had led her down here.

She passed by a large, square platform, where she had defeated her first Heartless. A small, but long corridor where she had chased an Emerald Serenade for hours before it finally collapsed, letting her strike the final blow. So many memories flowed past her mind's eye, _most_ of them good.

"Xion?" She spun around, summoning her Keyblade in the process. The little mage boy she had met a while ago, Vivi, watched her with unblinking eyes, reminding her too much of a Heartless. With a nervous giggle, she sent her Keyblade away.

"Oh, hello Vivi. It's been a while."

The mage's yellow eyes seemed to glow with happiness. He nodded and fixed his hat before speaking. "Last time I saw you, you asked me about what a Mary Sue was. Did you really find a Mary Sue?"

It was then that she realized how long ago that actually was. Sure, it had only been a week since she last saw him, but so much had changed in that time period.

"Yes. I found a lot of them. Vivi, do you know how to get rid of one?" The mage probably wouldn't be able to help, but there was still the slight chance that he could.

"Umm...I've never had to, so no. Sorry."

She sighed. Well, it was worth the try. "Alright, thanks Vivi." She waved goodbye to the mage as she walked away, slightly bitter that she had gotten nowhere. It was starting to get late, which meant that another day had been wasted.

She only had 24 days left before the Sues could come back, and with each day there was less and less of a chance of finding Melle alive. There had to be some sort of clue. Something, anything to help her.

For some odd reason, a picture of the rabbit she had saw earlier today flashed in her head.

* * *

Perfect reason why Aerith isn't affected by the Sues. sorry for the late update, it just took my forever to actually get around to working on this. I SWEAR, THIS ISN'T A FILLER CHAPTER. Closure with Vivi is nice, because unlike last time, he's not going to be playing a role in this story. Oh, and if you can guess the references in this chapter, I will love you forever.

Ah, rabbits. While the plot bunnies terrorize Walls, Xion meets an odd rabbit. ;3 Foreshadowing? Yes please.

Oh, and if you guys read both Walls and TSC, you'll see little things involving the other fic. I like how it plays out, to be honest. It's nice to have two fics in the same universe. ^^ Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Tell me what you thought about it.


	4. Leon's Not Normal

Dedicated to everyone and everything BUT OOC Leon and OOC Cloud.  


* * *

While Cloud would like to say that Agailia got her brains from his side of the family, he simply couldn't; he knew that he just wasn't that smart. However, according to Agailia's stories of her other father, he was a brilliant man. A scientist for the wise ex-king Ansem.

The fact that Cloud was able to score with a man amazing enough to apprentice under the great Ansem the Wise made him a proud man.

He hadn't even realized -or remembered- that he was gay until Agailia had brought it up. As soon as the words came out of her mouth, it all made sense to Cloud. He was running away from Tifa not because of any silly thing like her light being too much for him to handle – no, it was because his _ex_-best friend was an insane stalker with a huge, unrequited crush on him.

"Now daddy, it makes me like, sooooo sad that you and Leon are like, fighting. So, I'm gonna help you out!" Agailia chirped, grasping Cloud's hand and skipping along. He smiled at the girl – no, his lovely daughter. She was so sweet and wonderful. To think that someone who go out of their way to do so much for him was humbling.

"How could you do that, Agailia? He hates me now..." Cloud muttered, feeling his heart break in two. He wanted nothing more than to be in the arms of his precious lover. After what happened (what did happen? He couldn't remember), Leon could never forgive him. Cloud seized on to a small bit of hope that maybe, maybe Leon had forgiven him, and he refused to let hope go.

Agailia giggled. "Simple! I'll tell Etsuko! She's, like, the best at, like everything. She's like, the Kingdom Hearts matchmaker!"

* * *

Aerith watched the two from afar, making sure to keep out of sight. The newcomer must have done something to Cloud. She had grown up with Leon and Cloud, and they had always hated each other. They were beyond rivals; they were mortal enemies. Yet when the newcomers arrived just three days ago, the entire Restoration Committee stopped acting like themselves. Leon followed Etsuko around like a lovestruck puppy, Cloud became a lovestuck puppy for the lovestruck puppy, and Yuffie turned into a sadistic kleptomaniac. Yet none of them seemed to have noticed.

She was so glad Cid and Merlin left. What would have happened to them if they were here? Would Cid turn into a nasty, swearing drunk or a kind-hearted lover of everything in the world?

She kept following Cloud and Agailia throughout the town. When they reached the Restoration Committee's headquarters, formerly known as Merlin's house, Aerith settled for standing by the window and peering in.

Leon was sitting at a table, having tea with Etsuko. The dog-like man, Ulfr, sat at Leon's heels. He mindlessly scratched Ulfr's head, moving his hand behind large wolf ears. His tail thumped in satisfaction.

Agailia walked in first, happily dragging Cloud in with her. At the sight of Leon, Cloud did something Aerith had never seen him do before: blush. He turned beet red and muttered something that she couldn't make out.

"Etsukoooo," Agailia whined, running up to her leader and giving her a small pout, "Cloud is saaaaaaaaad."

"Really? Why?" Etsuko inquired. Agailia launched into a full-fledged rant about how Cloud needed his soulmate back or else he would sink into a deep depression, which he would only escape by suicide.

Everyone in the room listened in horror and surprise, while Cloud was bawling his eyes out like a toddler.

The worst part was that they all took the over-the-top news with dead faces, like if they were discussing a death in a family. Aerith could only watch in disbelief.

She watched in growing horror as Leon reached towards Cloud, pulling him into a hug and kissing the top of his forehead. He murmured words of comfort to the utter wreck in his arms, while the newcomers watched. Agailia in particular looked like she was going to explode with happiness.

"Cloud..." Leon muttered. A pit formed in Aerith's stomach. Something odd was going to happen.

"I forgive you. I really do, and I'll always love you...but...my heart belongs to someone else." He said, running his hands through the blond mop of hair. Aerith felt her eye start to involuntarily twitch. That could _not be_ Leon, and that sobbing wreck in his arms was in no way Cloud. They didn't act like that. Ever!

"Who?" Cloud choked out, his voice cracking and hiccuping from the tears.

"It's..." Aerith could literally see a layer of tension in the air, swirling around like smoke.

"Etsuko."

The tension broke, falling to the floor in huge, airy chunks. Cloud ran out of the house sobbing, completely ignoring Aerith as he ran by her. Agailia and Leon ran after him, but Leon stopped outside of Merlin's door while Agailia kept running.

"I-I'm sorry, Cloud..." Leon whispered, clenching his fists. For the first time in his life, fat, wet tears rolled down his cheeks.

Aerith _would_ have felt sorry for him, if he was being more like himself. But the Leon she knew would never cry over Cloud.

She glanced back inside the window. Etsuko was a statue, completely frozen. A light, perfect shade of rose covered her cheeks. Ulfr was beside her legs, nuzzling her knee in a gesture of comfort.

Amazed at how utterly over-the-top and absurd the whole thing was, Aerith debated about leaving. Before she did, she walked up to Leon. "Leon...are you alright?" The brunette asked, concerned for her friend.

"Do I _look_ alright, Aerith? Do you even _know_ what just happened?" He spat, giving her once of the fiercest death glares she had ever seen. She backed up slowly, trying to calm her beating heart down. Leon rarely, if ever, snapped at anyone.

"Yes, I did. But you're...you're not acting like yourself," she tried to explain.

"Aerith," he whispered, his voice sinister and completely free of any traces of human compassion. She jumped back when it suddenly raised to a deafening roar. "THE MAN OF MY DREAMS JUST WALKED OUT ON ME, AND I CAN'T CHOOSE BETWEEN HIM OR A GODESS! OF COURSE I'M NOT ACTING LIKE MYSELF!"

Exasperation tugged at her mind. "That's exactly the point! You hate Cloud! You've hated him since you first met!"

Leon leaned in dangerously close to Aerith. His nostrils flared like a mad bull. Leon...the Leon she knew would never do this. "Aerith...you've gone too far. Go. Now."

"W-what? Why?"

"DON'T FUCK WITH ME!" He roared, spinning around and punching the wall. She heard the painful sound of bones cracking...or even splitting. When he faced her again, his hand was severely deformed. The bones in his knuckles were popped grossly out of place. "I'm kicking you out of the Restoration Committee. Leave."

She froze, feeling tears brim at the corners of her eyes. Out of all of the members of the Restoration Committee, she was closest to him. "Squall..." She whispered.

"Don't make me say it again. Leave Aerith, before I use force."

Aerith didn't need to be told a third time. She turned and walked away, never daring to look back at Leon. If he flew into another rage, his hand probably wouldn't be the only thing broken.

Leon had changed. Within three days, he had gone from a cold and distant, but kindhearted man to an emotional wreck, filled with rage and hate. It wasn't natural. It must have been because of the newcomers; besides, he wasn't the only one affected. The entire Committee had changed drastically...well, the ones that she knew of. Cid was probably fine, Merlin was gone, and as for Tifa...

Tifa hadn't really met the newcomers. Maybe she saw the change too. She had to go find the fighter, and hopefully get a sympathetic ear in the process.

She stopped in the middle of the town and looked around. "Now...where is she?"

* * *

Axel lounged on one of the couches in the Gray Area, watching a small ember dance in-between his fingers.

He quickly extinguished the ember when he heard the soft pitter-patter of footsteps. He raised his head up in hopes that it would be his missing friend, coming to explain where the hell he had been recently. His hopes were quickly shot down when he heard the sound of leather swishing along the floor.

Only one person walked like that. The one person who was flamboyant enough to walk in a deliberately odd way and make the bottom of their coat brush against the ground without letting it drag.

That person was Luxord.

"Flame," Luxord greeted (Axel was utterly _amazed_ at how creative Luxord's nicknames were), "Marluxia is looking for you."

With a loud, exaggerated sigh, he lifted himself up off of the couch. "Ugh. Why can't he just come here?" Every single time he talked to Marluxia, he always had to go to him.

"Because, there's something he wishes to discuss with you in private." Luxord nudged him with his elbow, trying to get him to move.

"What's in it for me?"

Luxord sighed, then with a smile, threatened, "because if you don't I won't get my munny back. And if I don't, then we'll be playing high stakes poker a lot."

Axel shuddered. High stakes poker with Luxord was torture, because he'd always cheat and subject the loser to whatever horrible punishment he could think of.

"Oh, and of course, there's the chance that he might stop making the gay jokes about you." He added.

In an instant, Axel was through a dark corridor and in Marluxia's greenhouse. He shielded his face from the harsh artificial sunlight above his head. The entire place was humid and the air was thick with the smell of the various plants. He tried not to breathe too deeply, so his allergies wouldn't start up like they did last time he was in here.

"Ah, Axel. I take Luxord sent you?" Marluxia said, stepping out from behind a large fern. His clothes were stained with dirt, plant matter, and probably some mixture of water and sweat, though he didn't seem to mind. Strangely, his hair still looked flawless.

"Pretty much. What do you want?" Axel asked, eying the other man cautiously. He wouldn't put it above him to turn this into a trap.

"Remember that adorable little Roxas impersonator who had a thing for you? The one that the real Roxas turned to pulp?" Marluxia said, his words seeping out, covered in a sickly-sweet tone. Axel shuddered, reluctantly remembering that situation and giving the Assassin a curt nod.

That was the second most awkward moment he had ever had in his life.

"Well," Marluxia continued, "because of that incident, Luxord says that our bet is invalid and is now demanding his munny back."

Axel snorted. This didn't have anything to do with him, and he really didn't want to be dragged into their stupid bets. "What does that have to do with me?"

"I already spent it on fertilizer, you see. And now I'm broke." His tone was getting more and more excited, and he soon ended up giving Axel a full-blown speech. "So I need to prove to Luxord that you are indeed gay for that adorable little boy in our lovely family of heartless monsters. If I could prove that you were in a...special kind of relationship with him, I could even get a few extra thousand! And it has to be him, because that's what we explicitly agreed on in the deal."

Axel opened his mouth, but Marluxia shoved a dirty but perfectly manicured hand in his face and eagerly continued. "So Axel, you are going to help me, right? You are going to tell me right here and right now that you want Roxas for yourself in that way so I won't have to pay Luxord, right? Or better yet, because you know you love me and you know I'm one of your closest allies, you're going to bring Roxas right here and let me take pictures of you two, right? Of course, it would have to stay PG-13, because otherwise if Xemnas found out I would be put in jail and I'm too pretty for jail. At least you would be in jail with me, so I wouldn't be alone, because the pictures would be of you performing questionable actions with Roxas-"

"Shut up Marluxia. You're rambling again," Axel said, pushing the hand out of his face. Marluxia scoffed, but admitted his defeat.

"I got carried away. Anyway, you will help me, right?" The pink-haired man asked, noticing the gratuitous amounts of dirt on his hands. He attempted to wipe them off on his dirt and plant matter covered pants, but that only made his hands dirtier.

"No, Marluxia, I won't. Leave Roxas out of your stupid schemes." Axel said, his tone completely flat and serious. Whatever was going on with Roxas, it must have been important. And given his reaction that day the Sue had tried to kiss him, if Roxas even thought that Marluxia said that the blond was gay for 'this idiot,' he would blow a couple of fuses and reduce the pink-haired man to pulp.

"But Axel!" Marluxia protested, but his face lit up, and his pout morphed into a cheshire grin. "Hey, wait. You didn't say you weren't gay fo—hey, get back here!"

Axel just ignored him and left. He already said no, and that was good enough. For now, he would ignore Marluxia; after all, whatever punishment Luxord's high stakes poker would give him what he deserved.

If only he could find Roxas and see what was going on. Ignoring Marluxia was also a good idea.

* * *

Count the whole Axel sub-plot as the return of the extras! I was going to write two, but the Axel one is just so long.

I'm not too fond of Leon and Cloud, but I CANNOT STAND OOC Leon and OOC Cloud. They're so overdramatic and annoying. So yeah, they're OOC on purpose. Sue magic and all.

No Xion in this chapter. I know exactly what I'm going to do for her, and I don't want to much it up by writing out some characters before I really understand them. So you'll see her next chapter.

Hope you liked this chapter. ^^ It sure was fun to write.


	5. Naminé Did It

Xion hadn't been able to stop thinking about that odd rabbit she had seen. Even when she was out on a mission, her thoughts revolved around the creaute. Why did he feel so familiar? Had she been there before on a mission?

Her mission that day was a simple one: collecting hearts, her normal default. At this point, collecting hearts was second nature to her, yet she still found trouble focusing on her mission. There were more important things at stake than collecting hearts. Kingdom Hearts wouldn't implode if it didn't get its daily dose of hearts, no matter what Xemnas tried to tell her and Roxas.

She had 23 days left - a little over three weeks. She couldn't afford to spend most of those days doing meaningless tasks when she could be out searching for a way to destroy the Sues!

Regardless of her new rank, Saix still hated her and would still do anything he could to spite her without getting on Xemnas's nerves (upsetting Axel was another story, since he had given up trying to spite Xion without Axel getting upset). So she decided the best thing to do would be to go straight up to Xemnas himself and ask for some time off.

Xion knocked on Xemnas's door. "Superior!" She called out. "Can I please..." she searched her mind for the right words. She had to be proper and formal when speaking to him, because he was back to his usual, non-Sue scarred self. "...uh, ask you something?"

So much for speaking formally.

A few seconds later, the door opened. Xemnas leaned on the doorframe, giving her one of his trademark unreadable expressions. For all she knew, he could be happy to see her, upset, bored, tired, or hungry. "Yes, number XIV?"

He was probably hungry.

Xion looked down at the floor, nervously tapping a single foot in an attempt to calm herself down. The Superior noticed (much to her annoyance) and quirked an eyebrow.

With a nervous laugh, she began to try to explain her ideas. "Well, Superior, you see, the Sue's aren't dead." A subdued sort of panic flashed over his calm demeanor, and Xion started gesturing frantically, trying her best to calm him down. "Wait, no! Don't worry! They won't come back yet." When he was slightly calmer, she continued. "I have 23 days to find a way to get rid of them before they come back. And I think that I could do that, if I had more time..." She trailed off, hoping that Xemnas would pick up on her hinting so she wouldn't have to ask him directly.

Thankfully, he did. "You want a vacation, right?" She nodded eagerly. His hand rested thoughtfully on his chin, and with each second that passed, Xion's anxiety had a talent for drawing out the suspense.

After an eternity, he finally answered. "Xion, you may _not_ get a vacation."

Her face fell. She started stammering, trying to ask why he would do that, but nothing more than a repeat of the first word would come out of her mouth.

Xemnas raised a single hand, silencing her instantly. "However, you now have a new mission. Find a way to get rid of the Sues. Don't report back to me until you have gotten rid of the Sues. If anyone above your rank tries to question your actions, simply tell them to come to me. Do you understand?"

She gasped softly. Even though it was clear that he was only giving her permission to leave because of his own hatred and fear of the Sues, she still felt grateful. With a hasty bow, she chirped, "thank you, Superior!" and skipped off into a dark corridor. Somehow, she knew where the best place to start looking for answers would be - a small feeling in her gut told her.

The room hadn't changed much: small cups of paint still gathered around the beautiful sculpture on the table. The only difference was that, save for her presence, the room was now empty. There were no strange rabbits in sight.

She wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

She approached the table, gently placing a hand on the castle in the middle of the sculpture. The spire at the top pricked her finger, and she examined the skin to check for blood. It didn't puncture the skin, thankfully.

"Wait..." Xion began, her brow furrowed in confusion. "I'm supposed to be looking for answers. Why am I worrying about my stupid finger?" She sighed, blaming it on boredom. There wasn't anything interesting in this room. She would have to go look somewhere else.

She glanced over to the doorway, and decided that 'somewhere else' could also mean the rest of this building. She was curious about it, and if she could, she wanted to find out who lived here. Maybe that rabbit did...

Just as she turned to walk out of the room, Xion heard a sound behind her. She turned back, and her jaw dropped in amazement.

Out of nowhere...okay, out of the sculpture (but that was _for dramatic effect_), the rabbit appeared. He hopped off the table, and noticed her almost instantly.

"Why are you here!" He demanded, pointing an accusing finger at her.

Rather than try to start an argument, Xion took a deep breath, and calmly explained herself. "I'm looking for answers, and something told me I could find them here."

The rabbit snorted. "Answers? Xion, answers for what?"

Well, at least she had guessed right about finding answers.

Xion stared at the rabbit in confusion. "How do you know my name?"

He opened his mouth to answer, but froze, snapping his mouth shut. His ear twitched, and when he spoke again, it was a low whisper. "We can't talk here. C'mon." He grabbed her hand, and jumped into the sculpture, dragging the girl with him.

Xion expected to slam straight into the sculpture and shatter it, but instead, she felt like she was falling.

And falling.

And falling.

"Are we almost done falling yet?" She asked, quickly growing impatient.

The rabbit, who had let go of her at this point, nodded. "Almost."

The ground, or rather, the pavement, came into view quickly. Xion braced herself for the inevitable impact, but she felt her descent slow, and her feet lightly touched the ground below. The rabbit, keeping a straight face throughout the entire fall, dusted his hands off on his blue shorts. "So, Xion, you said you wanted answers?" He asked again, this time in a more casual tone.

Xion glanced around her surroundings, trying to figure out where she had landed. It appeared that she was in the middle of a street, surrounded by friendly, cheerful buildings on all sides. Cartoonish animals walked around, going about their daily business (or just milling about like the loiterers they were).

"Yes." She said, nodding briskly. "First of all, how do you know my name? I've never been here...or seen you before." She finished, and quietly mumbled, "not that I can remember, at least..." under her breath.

The rabbit sighed. "You _have_ been here before, Xion. You used to live here."

"No I didn't."

"Yes, you did. Everyone here remembers you. You're a local legend." The rabbit gestured to the others around them, who were all staring at her in awe, murmuring quietly to each other. Huh. She hadn't noticed that before.

Loiterers.

"How, though?" Xion asked. "Please, tell me what happened."

"Guess I'll have to start at the beginning..." the rabbit grumbled. "My name is Oswald. This is Wasteland, where all forgotten characters live. One day, you showed up here. Right by the ice cream shop, if I remember right."

Xion smiled. She didn't know why she would be here, or why she forgot, but at least that bit made sense. Maybe they served sea-salt ice cream here.

"I was out here when you first came. I showed you around town, and you explained to me where you had come from. You said you had sacrificed yourself to save some of your friends. To make things right."

"But...that means," Xion said, biting her lip, "that I sacrificed myself, only to be forgotten, right?" She didn't believe him, but for now, she would play along.

Oswald whistled. "Oh boy, were you upset when you found that out. You wouldn't come out of your house for days. I was afraid you had thinned yourself out or something." Xion decided against asking what he meant by that.

"Well, needless to say, you got over it. And you started to live a normal life. You were pretty happy here. You met Goofy one day, and somehow, you knew him, even though he didn't know you."

Goofy. Goofy was one of Sora's friends, along with-

"-and somehow you knew Donald too."

Yet another part of the story that made a strange amount of sense. "I asked you how you knew them." Oswald's face darkened, and his tone grew a little more somber. "You told me about where you came from. About some Sora kid, and his friends." He paused. "You...you told me about my brother."

"The King?" She voiced. Somehow, this world did feel familiar. Like she had been here before. It was homey, and it felt as if she belonged here. Much more so than the World That Never Was had ever felt.

But Oswald's story couldn't be true. As she listened to him, his tone was so honest that she felt as if it was true. Maybe...maybe the rabbit was just a good liar and storyteller. "Yeah...you told me he's a King now. King of the Realm of Light."

"He is," Xion said.

"Makes sense. I always knew he was destined to do great things." A wistful look was on his face, but he shook his head, and it disappeared. "Anyways, I need to get back on track."

"One day, something weird happened. The sky started swirling up, and a giant hand appeared out of the clouds. I thought it was Yen Sid at first, but the hand was smaller. Daintier, like a girl's hand. It picked you up and took you away, just like that. After that day, no one ever saw you again. Until now, that is."

A girl's hand...? Maybe...maybe it was Namine. She always seemed to know a lot more than she let on. Xion made a mental note to talk about this to her, when she got back.

"That story sounds pretty far-fetched." Xion observed, slightly unnerved by the amount of people-animal things surrounding her. Oswald shot them a glare, and they all retreated into different shops. "I actually came here to see if I could find a way to destroy a Mary Sue. Or if my friend Melle was here."

Oswald's face went blank. "...oh." He shifted his feet awkwardly. "Well, sorry for dropping all of this on you, then. I'd be glad to help you with your problem, but I've never heard of either of those people."

Xion resisted the urge to giggle. A Mary Sue isn't a people. A Mary Sue is a person, but not a specific person...that she knew of, at least.

"Uh, it's alright." Xion said, trying to comfort the rabbit. "Now, I should get going. Is there anyway for me to get out of here?" She asked.

"Yeah, but you might want to wait a bit. Yen Sid's probably mucking about the room right now, and if you went outside, it wouldn't be good."

Xion sighed, the corners of her lips tugging downward.

Oswald frowned as well, but quickly replaced it with a more upbeat half-smile. "Hey, cheer up. I'll pay for some ice cream while we wait." He offered, jerking he head towards the colorful, old-timey shop.

Xion felt herself smiling as well. If there was one thing that could put her in a good mood, it was ice cream. Well, that and Axel's corny jokes, but at the moment, that option was very unavailable. "...you know, that does sound pretty good."

After some delicious and much-needed ice cream (sadly, they didn't have sea-salt, nor did they know what it was), Oswald helped Xion get out of Wasteland. It involved a very, very, _very_ big trampoline, an upset monkey, a mini-rebellion, a small mustached man who called himself a Gremlin, and a few rockets, but they did manage to get back out into the room Xion first appeared in.

Oswald sat down on the chair, watching Xion as she regained her bearings. Once she felt like she wasn't going to fall down and collapse, she turned to the rabbit and gave him a grateful smile. "Hey, can I ask you one last thing?"

Oswald shrugged. "Sure. Go for it."

"What world are we in? Like, what's it called?"

"Well, you know Wasteland," he gestured to the sculpture, "is called...Wasteland, but out here," he gestured wildly at the space around them, "is on the edge of some world called Twilight Town. I've never explored outside of this tower, though, since I'm not strong enough to stay out of Wasteland for long periods of time."

"Twilight Town?" Xion asked. "Hmm...I never would have thought." She shook her head, and turned her attention back to the rabbit. "Anyways, thanks for helping me, Oswald!"

He waved at her, then jumped back into the sculpture, growing smaller and smaller until he disappeared from her sight.

Twilight Town. She would have never guessed.

"I didn't get the answers I wanted, though..." Xion frowned. She was back to square one, and if it was even possible, had even more questions than before.

There was one that was bothering her the most. More than any other, and it groped at her mind almost as much as her new mission did.

Assuming that Oswald's story was real..._what the heck had happened_?

**0 X 0 X 0 X**

"Hey, Zexion! Where are you?" Demyx shouted, popping in and out of dark corridors in an attempt to look for the sixth member of the Organization. He had great news to tell the ex-researcher, and as a result, needed to find him as quickly as possible.

With the help of a few Dancers (his own personal Nobodies; Xigbar had nicknamed them 'Whorebodies' for some strange reason. Demyx usually got Xigbar to shut up and go away by bitching and whining like a little moron. It worked every time.), he soon abandoned the corridors and found the other man in the library.

He was curled up in a chair towards the back of the room, his nose firmly planted in a book almost as big as his Lexicon. Demyx didn't even try to conceal his grin of triumph as he walked over and pushed the book down in a rather eloquent, graceful manner.

In reality, Demyx did a strange half-flailing motion until he slapped the large book out of Zexion's hands. It landed on the floor with a loud thump and a groan.

The groan was Zexion's, of course, as Demyx began to excitedly chatter.

"Hey, you remember that album you helped me work on, right? While we were trapped by all of those sparkly bitches?"

'Sparkly bitches' had become a popular term in the castle to refer to the Sues. Some of the other members preferred to call them different names, but sparkly bitches had stuck for Demyx. Xaldin, for example, called them target practice. Some members, like Xemnas, didn't call them anything – at the mention of any one of the Sues' multiple nicknames, Xemnas would just groan and down half a bottle of Advil.

His favorite reaction was Saix's, who turned beserker at the mere thought of them.

Zexion rubbed the bridge of his nose, giving Demyx a nasty one-eyed glare. "I've been trying to repress that memory, but yes, I still remember."

"Well, I sent it to a few record companies, and they all loved it!" Zexion quirked an eyebrow, but Demyx continued. "I chose the one who offered me the most munny, so don't worry about that. I'm not an idiot."

"Could have fooled me," Zexion muttered under his breath. Demyx chose to ignore him.

"So, since you were my songwriter-"

"-I believe the correct term is lyricist," Zexion said, interrupting him. Always so kind.

"Since you _helped me out_, I gave you credit on the album. I told them to give you 20 percent of however much money I earn." Demyx thought his offer was pretty generous.

"I'm flattered." Zexion deadpanned, picking up his book and shoving his face back into it. If Demyx wanted to, he could slam the book right then and probably break a few bones in his face, but he decided against it. "How much munny did you make?"

"Well," Demyx began proudly, "I earn 30 percent of however much munny is made. The more copies sold, the more munny I earn."

"I'm guessing you made about 100 munny, then," Zexion added, ignoring the fierce glare Demyx tried to give him.

"The album's been out for two days now. It costs 12.95, plus tax. It's already sold 75,000 copies!"

This finally caught Zexion's attention. He pulled a bookmark out of his pocket, marked his place, then set the book aside as he did the calculations in his head. "That means you've made...291,375 munny. Impressive." Demyx nodded, eager for him to continue. "Assuming that whatever percent I get-"

"-20 percent," Demyx helpfully reminded him.

Zexion looked unfazed. "Assuming that the 20 percent I get is subtracted out of your total profit, you earn 233,100 munny. And I earn 58,275 munny." He made an uninterested noise in the back of his throat. "Not that bad."

Demyx's grin grew wider. "Sales are expected to climb to..." He trailed off, looking away as he tried to remember the number his brand-new agent had given him. "...uhh, I believe it was 500,000? Maybe?"

That finally spurred a reaction that went beyond 'reasonable disinterest.' A small smile spread across Zexion's face, and he looked up at Demyx with a peculiar shine in his eyes. "Demyx...I believe we should start working on that second album soon."

**0 X 0 X 0 X**

Shut up. I don't know if there can be .95 munny. That didn't stop me. I wrote that scene at 4 in the morning, okay? And I felt the need to do math.

At 4 in the morning.

Something is wrong with me.

Anyways, this has been sitting in my comp for a few weeks, so I was all oh yeah I should totally update this fic. most of you people probably haven't read the prequel, since I wrote that a year ago. Oh well.

So yeah, fleshing out details about this universe. My basic answer for everything in this 'verse: Naminé did it. Mhm. She did.

Y'know, I thought when Epic mickey first came out that this section would be swamped with crossover fics. It never was. That made me sad. D: So that's why we have this! Yay for crossovers! :D And Oswald is amazing. Don't deny it.


	6. Answers

Naminé always knew that this moment would come. Sooner or later, she would be forced to admit what had happened. She couldn't lie forever, even if it tore her up inside.

She didn't look at Xion as she stepped out of a corridor of darkness. Her eyes didn't move from her drawing – of herself, the only one she had ever drawn of herself, uncertainly touching the heart that floated over her head – as the Replica took a seat at the other end of the table.

The silence was thick, and choking. She felt like she was drowning in it, but at the same time, she didn't want to leave. She didn't want to face what words would bring.

But she couldn't get what she wanted.

"What happened?"

The words were simple, flat, but with an edge that cut through Naminé fiercer than any sword could, and the pain raced through her, mixing with guilt. She hated lying. So very, very much.

She didn't look up from her drawing, and stayed silent.

"Naminé, please, tell me!" Xion pleaded. "What happened?"

She couldn't take it anymore. The silence was choking her, and with each passing second, it felt like Xion's hope in her was vanishing. If she waited any longer, it felt like their friendship would dissolve into nothing. "I...I'm sorry." She choked out, shaking her head. Nobodies weren't supposed to cry, but her eyes were starting to water. Guilt washed over her in thick, nasty waves.

"So you know..." Xion muttered darkly. "You were the one who...who pulled me out of Wasteland, weren't you?"

Naminé heard the questioning tone behind her words, as if she didn't fully believe them herself.

But they were true, and she nodded weakly.

"Then tell me what happened!"

Naminé couldn't back out. If she didn't say anything, she would surely lose Xion's friendship – one of the only friendships she hadn't gained through pure lies. Even though...even though she was still hiding things.

There was a difference between hiding the whole truth in order to protect someone and lying, right?

"I...I messed up, Xion." Hadn't she said this before? Something like this? Hadn't she once almost spilled all of her secrets?

But if she did, back then, no one was willing to listen. Now, she had no other choice.

Once the first words came out, more followed, and Naminé couldn't stop herself.

"Once upon a time, before all of this happened, I messed up. I tampered with Sora's memories and because of me, a lot of bad things happened." She choked back a sob. She didn't even know she could cry. "A lot of innocent people lost their lives..."

She was a killer, but she wasn't bad. No, she wasn't a bad person. She was trying her best to atone for those mistakes.

"...a chain of events was set off. You...you were killed trying to protect Roxas. But you were happy with it – you chose that fate, Xion. You died like a true hero." She hung her head, letting her bangs fall in her face. "But...everyone forgot about you. Even Roxas and Axel. Everyone except me, but that was only because whenever I went into Sora's memories, I saw your memories."

She finally stole a glance at Xion, who watched her with a blank face. Shuddering, Naminé continued.

"Even though you were destroyed, I found you again, through Sora. By then, almost all of the Organization was gone – but...if Sora didn't do it, then Xemnas would have taken over the universe. He's a bad man, Xion. I can't say the same for the rest of the Organization, but he is." Her voice, already quiet and thick with emotion, went to a quiet whisper, too quiet for Xion to hear. "Besides," she muttered, "Terra needs to be freed..."

"So, we need to destroy Xemnas?" Xion asked, strangely understanding. "Is he really evil? Even now?"

Naminé made a half-shrugging motion. "I'm...not sure. There's a small chance that here, he isn't. Maybe he truly wants his heart back. But the only way for a Nobody to get their heart back is to destroy them, and destroy their Heartless as well."

Xion broke the silence with a loud, bitter laugh, causing Naminé to jump slightly. She looked up, watery eyes full of confusion.

"Collecting hearts is for nothing, then, right? Our," she paused, shaking her head, "I mean, their entire lives are for nothing right now. That's...fitting." She concluded. "Fitting, for a bunch of Nobodies."

She could hear the pain in Xion's voice. Yes, the realization and all of the answers were a lot for someone to bear. It was confusing, to say the least. And it hurt, knowing that the only way to truly help your friends was to kill them.

But killing them would only lead to more hurt. It was a painful cycle...one that she was trying to break. But how?

"I'm sorry, Xion. I didn't want you to know about all of this. I was only trying to help."

Xion shook her head. "No...I'm glad to know. But, I still have another question. If I was absorbed into Sora," she made a strange face, still obviously confused with the idea, "then how did I get into Wasteland?"

Naminé paused for a brief moment. She wasn't entirely sure herself, to be honest. All she knew was that Xion somehow ended up there. "This is only my guess, but when everyone forgot about you, your body somehow reappeared in Wasteland. Though...I'm not entirely sure." She paused, worrying her bottom lip. "Actually..I don't know at all. Sorry."

"It's..." Xion sighed. "...alright." She stood up from her chair, and Naminé instinctively flinched. This wouldn't be good.

"I can't say that I didn't want to know what you told me. But..." Oh Ansem. It was coming. Naminé braced herself for the oncoming words. The hate. The dark corridor opening and closing.

The loss of a dear friend.

"But...all of those issues...aren't my problem." Naminé looked up in confusion.

"W-what...? You...you don't hate me?" She asked, her voice almost non-existent.

Xion laughed. "You're my friend, Naminé. I could never hate you. I'm not that happy with you right now, but I could never hate one of my friends."

Joy shot through Naminé's veins, and she felt a large smile flit across her face. "We're still friends?" She asked, disbelieving the Replica's words. "Really?"

Xion nodded. "We'll always be friends. But..."

Just like that, the joy vanished, leaving only fear behind. But was never a good word.

"But...I still have a mission to complete. Naminé, you've given me answers. Answers I wanted, but not the answers I need. I still need to destroy the Sues." Determination shone in her eyes, even though her words were hesitant. "I don't know where else to look, but I'll search the entire Realm of Light for an answer if I have to."

The more she thought about, the more she realized that Xion really was like Sora. They both shared that same fierce loyalty for their friends, and they both tried to do what they thought was right, no matter what. She couldn't help but admire those qualities. She didn't have them.

"Good luck, Xion. I hope you can complete your mission."

Xion sighed. "So do I."

**0 X 0 X 0 X**

Aerith entered the ruins of the old castle, stepping as carefully as possible. The building was deathly quiet, and she used that to her advantage. The quieter it was, the easier it would be to listen for signs of others.

Before long, she heard a voice. Distant, but familiar. She couldn't quite put a name to it, but continued on, hoping that it was Tifa. After all, they were acquaintances, but not exactly friends. Tifa was more concerned with looking for Cloud – Aerith was more concerned with the duties of the Committee. If they ever sat down together, they would probably be able to get closer, but the opportunity had simply never arisen.

As she crept closer to the voice, her heart rose higher and higher, until she could feel it hammering away in her throat. It sounded so familiar...but, as she realized, it wasn't Tifa.

She still crept closer, until she was close enough to hear the words clearly. Her heart fell straight into her stomach. She peeked around the corner, and her suspicions were confirmed.

What terrible luck.

...at least, Aerith thought bitterly, she had found Tifa.

"God, I cannot, like, stand you at all! You're, like, a stupid Cloud fangirl!" Agailia hissed, glaring at Tifa.

But something was wrong. Normally, Tifa would have just punched a cheeky brat like that in the face. Instead, she stared blankly at the shorter girl, as if hypnotized by some unknown spell.

"_My daddy_ doesn't love you. Like, at all. So just give up, seriously. You're, like, so pathetic." The spiky haired girl scoffed. "You're, like, a psycho bitch, and you're so totally ugly. I've, like, seen dog's asses prettier than you. You need to like die or something! Ugh!"

"...pathetic? ...ugly?" Tifa asked distantly, her eyes unfocused and foggy. "...die?"

"You're, like-like-like," Agailia sputtered angrily, "_you're an idiot too!_ Ugh, I hate hate hate hate HATE you!" She screamed.

Aerith paused for a moment. She recalled those words...a crazy clown once went on a rant for 10 minutes, spouting the word hate over and over again. He was swiftly taken to the Radiant Garden Mental Institution (the official name was Sunshine Happy Nice Meadows) and never seen again. Maybe Agailia knew the man.

(The answer, actually was no. Agailia was an idiotic little fanbrat, and didn't know about the sheer epicness of crazy clowns. The only Final Fantasy she had played was VII, and even then she got Etsuko to beat all of the bosses for her. She just watched the cutscenes.)

"I'm an...idiot?" Tifa whispered. "I'm an idiot..." She repeated again, finally breaking her gaze from the wall to stare down at her feet.

"Finally! God, that took, like, forever." Agailia grumbled, folding her arms across her chest and looking away. "Daddy hates you too, by the way."

Suddenly, the fog in Tifa's eyes vanished, leaving behind only a startled look. She gasped, and within seconds burst into tears. "Noooooooo!" She wailed, dropping to her knees and punching the ground, leaving several large indents in it. "My precious Cloudy! He can't hate me! He _can't!_" She sobbed, collapsing into a pitiful wreck on the floor.

Agailia merely giggled. "Haha," she sneered. "Serves you right, you annoying bitch." She giggled again, and walked away. Aerith made sure to stay flat against the wall, afraid to even breathe. Her heart was hammering away in her chest.

What...what had Agailia done to Tifa? Was it mind control? Did she somehow tamper with her heart?

What was with these people?

Once Agailia left, Aerith left her hiding spot to rush to Tifa's side. The once-proud fighter was still on the floor, sobbing hysterically.

"Tifa...?" Aerith asked, gently resting a hand on her shoulder.

"Leave me alone!" Tifa wailed, pushing her hand away. "I want my Cloudy back!"

Aerith looked around the room, unsure of what to say next. Thankfully, Tifa decided that she wanted to speak more, and continued wailing.

"I want to wallow in peace! Go away!" She let out another anguished wail, and punched the floor several more times. Aerith unconsciously flinched each time she heard the floor compacting under her fists.

Tifa was strong. Strong and hysterical.

That wasn't a good combination.

"Are you sure, Tifa? I don't think you're doing well. Let me try to help you." Aerith gently told her, trying to keep her voice sweet and calm, as to not agitate the fighter.

"I said, I want to be alone!" Tifa yowled, the words carrying a finality, laced with unsaid threats.

Aerith wanted to help her, but she also didn't want to die. Tifa clearly was under whatever spell the other's were.

She was the only sane one left.

That wasn't good news.

**0 X 0 X 0 X**

After gratuitous amounts of face-sucking in the middle of Merlin's house (Yuffie insisted on it – she wanted to watch), Aden and Roku finally broke apart, panting.

"It gets better every time," Aden said with a smirk, ever-so-graciously slipping his hand under the blond's shirt. Yuffie hollered in enthusiasm, urging them to continue.

Meanwhile, Roku's face turned a fierce shade of scarlet. "Alright...if you say so." He continued to blush violently as Aden's snake of a hand wormed around his body, making him squirm and feel all tingly inside.

Things escalated from there, as they always do with Aden and Roku, and Yuffie videotaped the entire thing with a large grin. She couldn't wait to show the others this. They'd love it!

After they...finished their business, Aden turned to his Suetiful lover. "How about we go out in the town?" He suggested with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle. "We can go get some food."

Roku thought it was a great idea, and nodded eagerly, blue Keyblade eyes shining with happiness and love. After all, any idea Aden thought up was amazing and excellent, just like him. Roku didn't deserve such a god.

He didn't deserve anything. But if Aden said he did, then he assumed he did. Aden was _never _wrong.

After they got dressed in their most fabulous clothes that Aden picked out (Aden wasn't just a sex god, he was also a fashion god!), they went out into the town. They stopped at the richest restaurant, and Aden paid for the lunch like the perfect gentleman he was.

He truly was perfect, in Roku's eyes. He was the best lover a boy like him could ever have. So truly and utterly perfect in every single way. He loved him with all of his heart.

Aden had put him back together after his amnesia. Aden had done everything for him.

Their love was perfect and eternal. He was sure of it.

Roku's thoughts followed that same tiresome pattern until, suddenly, Aden stood up.

"I gotta go take a piss. Be right back, and maybe then I'll take you in there for a second round," he purred, leaning down and licking the shell of the boy's ear, making him shiver.

(Ew. Seriously. Ew. Roku thought it was sexy, but..._ew._)

Roku nodded, but the second his redheaded lover vanished from view, he began to worry. People looked at him strangely, and he shifted uncomfortably.

Somehow, he got the bright idea to go outside. He stepped outside of the restaurant, breathing in the fresh air. He was terrified without Aden by his side, and Roku looked around in worry, as if something would pop out of the shadows and eat him.

That didn't happen.

Meanwhile, two very random, very clumsy workers were setting up the restaurant's second floor – a dance hall, complete with a grand piano. The person who commissioned them wasn't exactly the brightest bulb in the shed either, and instructed them to bring up the piano so he could figure out where to put it.

"Right by the edge!" He commanded, letting the workers shift slightly closer to the edge. He narrowed his eyes. "Closer...closer..."

Somehow, the workers got to the very edge, and one misplaced swing of the arm ended in the piano tumbling off of the roof.

And right onto Roku's unsuspecting head.

He was flattened into a small, Suetiful pancake.

As he struggled with consciousness, he realized that it was a bad idea to go anywhere without Aden. Because then, he got pianos dropped on his head.

Too late for the epiphany, though.

**0 X 0 X 0 X**

Nice extra, amirite? Lol. :3

So, this chapter was kinda filler-ish, especially the part with Xion and Nami. I just felt like I needed to get that out there. As for Aerith's bit...poor girl. Her part will be played for laughs, since she's the only sane one left. She'll get to have stupid adventures with the Sues as she tries to figure out what they are.

Honestly, I barely know how Xion's story is going to go. I'm a bad author, aren't I? Oh, and I'm not sure if I'm writing Aerith right. she's hard for me. :/

Anyways, yes, I updated again. Yay! :D Actually, the reason is that I feel bad for having so many stories that need to be finished on (three) and there's one that I'm writing now. It shall be shippy and delicious. :3 But I want to at least try to finish this fic soon.

And that extra? Well, in the shippy story, Akuroku (haha I love that pairing) is one of the main couples. So somehow my rage over not being able to write AkuRoku turned into a piano getting dropped on Roku. LOL. HOW DOES THAT WORK.

I dunno, but I like it. I _hate_ Roku and Aden so very much. Like, hate hate hate hate hate hate HATE HATE Kefka-style. _So. Much. Hate._

Review please.

_(So much.)_


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